The movie that made Guillermo del Toro more miserable than his father’s kidnapping: “The worst experience of my life”
Guillermo del Toro isn’t afraid to make people sad. His films are often tinged with tragedy, amplified by his engrossing fantasy worlds and larger-than-life characters. The Shape of Water makes you feel sad about a giant fish man – if that isn’t great storytelling, then what the hell is?
What makes the master of the modern creature feature sad, though? Well, according to an interview conducted by The Guardian, the answer is one of his own movies. Not because of the content of the film, mind you, but because of the behind the scenes turmoil he experienced while making it.
“I remember the worst experience of my life, even above the kidnapping of my father, was shooting Mimic,” the Mexican director revealed. “Because what was happening to me and the movie was far more illogical than kidnapping, which is brutal, but at least there are rules. Now, when I look at Mimic, what I see is the pain of a deeply flawed creature that could have been so beautiful.”
Mimic, which came out in 1997, was del Toro’s second film and the first one he made as part of the Hollywood system. It stars Mira Sorvino as a scientist working to stop the spread of a super plague via cockroach but ends up coming across a highly evolved breed of insect that can copy human behaviours and features. The movie was distributed by Miramax Films, the company owned and operated by Harvey Weinstein. Del Toro had numerous arguments with the now-disgraced producer over the final cut and ended up disowning the finished product over what he thought were terrible creative decisions. Cinemagoers agreed with the director, as the movie failed to turn a profit at the box office.
“My worst experience, or experiences, in show business—the worst by a mile and a half—is Mimic in 1996, ’97 with the Weinstein company,” the maestro later told Den of Geek. “It was very much finding yourself trapped in the fine print or in a completely dire circumstance in which you had to learn to flip things so you could completely function. So I did get my Pinocchio moment where you’re able to turn the tables. I survived it. I finished the movie, and I had a career afterwards. So it’s a miracle. It could’ve gone wrong, but if you survive it that makes you a lot more resilient.”
As for his father’s kidnapping, that took place around the same time that Mimic was being made. Federico del Toro Torres was held hostage for 72 days after being snatched by a gang in Guadalajara, Mexico. They wanted $1million for his safe return, and a long-standing rumour is that James Cameron fronted the cash to pay them. According to del Toro on the ReelBlend podcast, however, this isn’t strictly speaking true.
“He paid for the negotiator,” the director explained. “He [Cameron] said, ‘The hostage negotiator will be in your house in 72 hours to help you go through the process.’ He did it on his own. And we didn’t ask; he volunteered. And he did offer, he said, ‘I’ll pay for the ransom.’ He did offer. He is that kind of guy. He is incredibly loyal. Incredibly strong.”
Between dealing with this and then Weinsteins at the same time, it’s safe to say 1997 is not a year del Toro is in any rush to revisit.
